I was very excited to hear this news, and not just because I’m an enthusiastic Luminar user. I think it’s important for us to have more viable choices besides Lightroom and Capture One when it comes to storing, processing and cataloging our images.

However, as we got further into 2018, we all started to wonder when Luminar would actually release the new catalog system. People started to get impatient, and rightfully so, since all we heard was “it’s coming…”

Then, a few weeks ago, Alex Tsepko, the CEO of Skylum admitted that they had indeed overpromised on their time frame. They were still in development mode, an still hoping to get an initial release out asap.

To make things right, Skylum promised that the Library module would appear before the end of 2018. In addition, all updates to the program for free throughout the entire year of 2019. From a PR standpoint, I think this was a very good move on their part, and I applaud Skykum for being forthcoming working to satisfy their customers.

And this will ensure that you get the upcoming library update for free, as well as all 2019 updates. (They’ve got some cool new tools coming!)

Having used numerous imaging processing programs over the years, including Photoshop, Lightroom, Capture One and Iridient Developer, I like Luminar because it gives me very good results quickly, it fosters a style of creativity that I find fits well with my “fun” approach to photography, it’s powerful, but very easy to use, and it plays well with the Fuji X-Trans RAW files.

Luminar’s Lead Developer is an X-T2 user, as are a number of their other employees. They’re passionate about Fuji, so they’re working very hard to get it right with regards to quality, color accuracy and sharpness.

While at PhotoPlus trade show last month, I sat down with three of Luminar’s project developers and software engineers and they showed me some examples of what’s coming. Without giving away too many details, I can attest that the future looks bright with Luminar.

In addition, they spent quite a bit of time asking me question about what I would like to see in the upcoming catalog system. They’re eager to get input, because they’re serious about putting out a truly great photography program that will match the needs of most photographers from start to finish.

On thing I can mention is the new Sky Enhancer Filter. This new AI can automatically detect and adjust your skies, even when they’re partially obscured by other objects in the frame. With some scenes, this it could require complicated masking to isolate the sky for adjustment, but with the new filter, it’s easily done in seconds with a single slider.

I’m excited for the new release, and if you’re a current Luminar user, you will be too. You may even want to download the new free Tonality Mega B&W Pack, which has over 170 awesome monochrome and looks and vintage styles. I’ve been having a lot of fun with this one! (See below.)

If you’re not currently a Luminar user, I highly recommend trying it out. There is so much I like about the program, and with the upcoming catalog module, it’s about to get better in a huge way.

These 4-day intensive workshops are specifically designed for Fuji shooters. We teach photographers how to get the most from their X Series gear and also give them a chance to try out different X/GFX cameras and lenses in the field.

This was my third time photographing in the Great Smokies, which is by every measure, a fantastic location for landscape photography. It’s also the most popular National Park in the entire U.S., with 10 million annual visitors, most of who come to peep autumn leaves during the fall.

After all, this region is known for its amazingly beautiful fall colors, with brilliant hues of red, orange and yellow that paint all of the hillsides and thick forests.

So, what did I do with all of this vibrant, saturated scenery? I ran around shooting in black and white.

Wait… huh?

That’s right, I captured about a third to a half of my scenes in monochrome.

I’m always trying to stretch my own creative boundaries, and I enjoy playing around with different techniques as I try to create unique images that excite and inspire me.

As much as I love color photography, I love shooting in black and white on my Fujifilm cameras, mostly with the ACROS film simulation. I’m also endlessly fascinated by the notion that photography is a representational medium where you’re trying to tell a story or evoke ideas and emotions with a single still image.

One of the most most powerful creative techniques in photography is to abbreviate your scenes. This engages your viewer’s imagination to fill in the rest of the story inside their own mind. When your narrow down to very simple compositions with just a few key elements, you incite an immediate connection between your photo and your viewer that triggers a much different emotional response.

By rendering the scene in black and white, you’re accentuating that notion of photographic abbreviation. Since most people don’t see in black and white, they can’t help but perceive the scene in a different light. Without the distraction of all that pesky color, they’re allowed to focus more on the elements of shape, shadow, tone and the placement of your subject matter, and hopefully extract the message you’re trying to present.

I’ve also been having fun lately with the new B/W ADJ. setting on the Fujifilm X-T3. Found inside the IMAGE QUALITY menu, this new feature lets you apply a warm or cool tone to your black and white images right inside the camera.

I love this feature, and aside from the faster autofocus, it’s pretty much my favorite thing about the X-T3. It’s like adding a whole new brush to your creative kit. The results remind me of classic warm, sepia-toned platinum prints, and gold toned prints, which impart a very slight blue cast.

When you select this setting on the X-T3, you can dial it up or down + or – 9 steps in either direction. It’s fun to experiment and see how the feel of the image changes, depending on the level of adjustment you make.

Then, after going warm and cool for a few frames, it’s always fun to go back to a straight neutral black and white tone and see what you get.

What do you think? Does the message of “fall” come across in these B/W images?

One thing to note, if you’re bracketing film simulations on the X-T3, the B/W ADJ. setting is not available to you, even if one or more of your chosen film sims are set to ACROS or Monochrome. Also, if you shoot RAW, it’s almost guaranteed that your RAW conversion software will trash the nice warm or cool color look you’ve applied as soon as you upload the image.

However, if you’re shooting RAW and doing in-camera conversions on the X-T3, you can apply the B/W ADJ. setting in the conversion menu, but only if you’re already using a black and white film sim. If your original RAW was shot with a color film sim, this option is grayed out.

As I mentioned above, I did capture a wide range of color images during the past week. When I look through my library, though, it’s the monochromes that seem to jump out at me. Those are the ones that make me go “oooh” and “ahhhh.” Probably for the exact reason I discussed in paragraph #3.

I encourage you to try shooting or processing in black and white, at least some of the time. It’s fun to see and show the world in a new way, and digital photography makes it really easy, since most modern cameras have some kind of monochrome mode tucked somewhere in the menus.

Shooting action is a blast. Except when it’s not. There’s nothing more exciting than trying to freeze an exhilarating moment when your subject is whizzing by; trying to capture the feeling of speed and physical exertion in a single frame, except when the light is really bad.

Then this supremely awesome style of photography can turn into an immensely frustrating challenge. Photography is all about light, and if you don’t have very much of it, then you’re hard pressed to get the kinds of images you were hoping for. You’re left standing in the dark with a card full of blurry, grainy frames and very few keepers.

It happens to the best of us, but rest assured, I’m here to help. In this post, I’ll give you five simple tips that will ensure better images when you’re trying to photograph moving subjects in terrible light.

Remember, it takes a lot of practice to be a good action shooter, so don’t get discouraged if you’re not always getting killer shots. Look at each outing as a new opportunity to learn and build valuable experience. These techniques work with any kind of moving subject, no mater if you’re shooting adventure, wildlife, indoor sports or kids running around the yard.

1. Crank The ISO Dial Up…WAY Up.

First and foremost, don’t be afraid of shooting at high ISO. The noise war is over and we won. Modern cameras do an amazing job in low light, so you shouldn’t be afraid of those big numbers on the far end of the dial.

Sure, you’ll get noise, but today’s image processors are able to render it as “grain” instead of the offensive, blotchy, digital noise that we used to get. And even if you do get a lot of grain, so what?

I know some of you old school guys get a little uncomfortable with this kind of cavalier, care-free attitude, but as I like to say, a little grain never hurt anyone. Your alternative might be a card full of blurry images, so deal with it. If you get a truly great shot, no one will care. They’ll be so blinded by the jaw-dropping bad-assery of your killer action image, they won’t even see the grain. They’ll just see awesome.

This being said, ISO noise does tend to block up in those mid-range tones, so it’s often most noticeable on human skin. i.e., bare arms and faces. If things get a little too splotchy for you, try using different compositions that don’t accentuate your subject’s faces, focus on other elements in the frame or back off and shoot wide.

ISO 1600

ISO 3200

ISO 12,800

2. Shoot in Monochrome

Here’s a technique I like to use with my Fujifilm cameras. Often times when I’m shooting at very high ISO settings, I’ll use the monochrome film simulations.

For some reason, the image processor is better able to reduce ISO noise and make it look even more like film grain when you’re shooting in black and white.

You’ll find this to be especially true with ACROS. It’s designed with a very complex grain structure that holds together extremely well and actually looks great at the higher ISO. I love shooting ACROS at ISO 3200 and 12,800.

In addition, black and white photos just look cool. They carry a strong, timeless representational feel that gives them extra power. Even if you don’t have bad light, and even if you’re not a Fuji shooter, I highly recommend shooting in B/W, or at least processing some of your color image to B/W when you get home. I think you’ll be impressed with your results.

The first two images below were made with varying degrees of adjustment using the “warm” setting. The third one is straight ACROS.

3. Use Your Widest Lens

Usually when shooting action, you want fast shutter speeds so you can get sharp subjects. By the nature of their design, wide angle lenses let you get sharper images at lower shutter speeds than you would normally be able to get with telephoto lenses.

As you move further away from your subjects and decrease their relative size in the frame, your chances of getting them sharp increase even more.

Earlier this month, I was shooting a mountain bike race inside a dark forest during a heavy rain storm, so my ambient light was very dim. My only hope was using my ultra-wide XF14mm f/2.8 lens and opening my aperture all the way up. With a telephoto, things would have been way too dark to get really crisp frames.

4. Use Slow Shutter Panning Techniques

Panning is an essential technique that should be in every action photographers bag of tricks. In situations like this, it can make all the difference between nailing exciting shots and getting an entire card full of throwaways.

To get the best results, you simply lock onto your subject and follow it with steady camera motion while clicking away with a relatively slow shutter speed. The trick is to move your camera at the same speed as your subject as they pass by. Your background will be blurred, as will part of your subject.

However, any part of your subject that’s moving at the same speed as your camera will be rendered with varying degrees of sharpness in your frame. If you’re able to match the motion perfectly, then that part of your subject will end up being wonderfully crisp, although a nice combination of crispness and blur usually makes for the most dynamic shot.

What speed works best? That depends on your lens and how fast the subject is moving. These photos below were shot with my XF14mm wide angle lens between 1/30 and 1/50 second.

It will take some experimentation to figure out what speeds give you results that match the look you’re going for. In adding to side-to-side panning, I often use front-to-back panning, which gives a different feel.

5. Use a Flash

Bringing a flash into the mix can add a whole new dimension to your action photos. When I’m shooting sports with flash or battery powered strobes, I usually combine it with my regular slow-shutter panning techniques. Although off-camera flash is my preferred method, using the pop-up flash on your camera can work just as well.

A quick blast of light at the end of your shutter cycle will illuminate your subject and create a “ghost-like” motion blur where you have a prominent, sharp subject against a blurred background. In order for this technique to work, you’ll want to make sure your flash is set to “Rear Curtain Sync.”

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